Arena Pharma inks deal on multiple immune and inflammatory targets

Arena Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ARNA) and fellow USA-based Beacon Discovery have entered into a strategic multi-year partnership (Project Cabrillo) aimed at building novel medicines across a range of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) targets.

Under the terms of the deal, Beacon – which was created by Arena in 2016, will be responsible for drug discovery activities. Arena will focus on developing and commercializing promising novel compounds in a variety of immune and inflammatory diseases that complement their first- or best-in-class pipeline. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Initial market reaction was positive, with Arena’s shares rising 1.8% to $46.24, but after-hours trading saw this drop back to $45.58.